“Markus!” I called out a little time after Hotoe had left. Once it was clear my friendship with Hotoe was settled, I then mulled over another problem I was facing. It had been percolating in my mind since I’d woken up in the chalet and learned I would not be getting another Protector for while.
The man put his head around the corner. “Yes.”
“Can you come sit with me for a moment? I have something I would like to discuss with you.”
He nodded and stepped out on the balcony. He came and took a seat across from me, looking at me expectantly. I took a moment to gather my thoughts, and then finally spoke.
“I’ve had some time to think about things, and I’ve made some decisions, but I wanted to run them by you first.”
He raised an eyebrow at this, but simply said, “Okay.”
“It’s concerning my protection. You mentioned that Gayle was put on the non-active list. What does that mean exactly?” I already had a good idea of what it meant, but I wanted absolute clarity on this, and I already knew Markus had a first hand experience of this.
The man sat back in his seat with such nonchalant behavior it was like he was simply discussing the weather. “It means she can’t take a charge on right now, but she is still qualified to do so. Usually a Pledge is taken off the list because of some sort of disciplinary action from Command. It can be permeant or temporary. It’s up to the Pledge. If the Pledge does certain things to appease those in Command, then he or she can get back on the list.”
“Do you know what Gayle has to do to get back on and how long it will take?”
Markus shook his head. “Nope. That’s not the sort of information Command gives out to everyone. It’s usually something strictly between Command and the one on the nonactive list. I could ask Gayle, but she’s not talking to me right now.”
I nodded. Markus had told me about their falling out, and that he himself had lost his Pledge status and College membership. I felt bad about all that, and I think Markus suspected I did, because he had declared quite emphatically that he wasn’t terribly put out by any of it, but I wasn’t so sure. He had kept his barrier up during that whole conversation, but my gut told me he cared more than he was saying. That was part of the reason I wanted to have this conversation with him.
“How do you feel about Gayle’s abilities as a potential Protector?” I said.
“If you are asking me if I would recommend her to you, I would. She’s good. You won’t find her on the top score lists, because she’s good at everything, not just one or two things. She’s well rounded in her training. She’s smart, quick on her feet, and is willing to do whatever she can for the person she’s protecting.
“I know this because Disciples start doing practice protection details with fellow students as early as fifth year, and every time she had a practice client, which I was one of them during her sixth year by the way, she would get glowing reports on how personable and capable she was during the week long detail. Yes, she was good at foiling the fake assassinations attempts, and meeting any unexpected trouble head on, but she also asked all the right questions so she was there to meet whatever trouble came up.
“That’s half the battle right there. There are many, even some of the high score trainees, who fail or come close to failing their practice protection details simply because they weren’t attentive enough to their charge or their charge’s personal lives. It’s a proven fact that a large amount of attacks come from someone a charge is close to.”
I nodded glad he thought well of her abilities. “Well, I know Vang made a list of candidates for me, but after everything, I think the only people I can really trust are a small handful, of which, includes yourself and Gayle. So I was thinking of asking her to be my Protector after she’s back on the list.”
Markus’s face broke out into a wide grin. “I think that’s a good choice.”
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Relief flooded me. I had hoped that he would be alright with my choice, but I wasn’t sure. I shifted as nonchalantly as I could into the second portion of why I’d called him out here.
“Though that doesn’t help me in the short term. I appreciate your father’s help in my protection while I’m here and the trip back, but I have some concerns about when I’m finally at the White Palace. My father already reassured me once that I would be safe there, but I wasn’t. I know he’s trying his best, but it would make me feel a lot better if I had someone I could trust to make sure that nothing is being overlooked in my protection and security.”
I paused a moment, because I wasn’t sure exactly how to proceed to this next part. Markus had already done so much for me, and he had claimed he had other things he was eager to do now that he wasn’t bound by the College any more. I didn’t want him to feel obligated to stay with me if he really did have better things to do. And I wasn’t sure how sensitive he might feel about not being a Pledge anymore despite his instance that he was alright with it.
“I know you aren’t a Protector, and now you are done with the College you may have other things you would like to pursue. But if you are willing, I’d like to hire you on as an adviser to my personal security until I can sort things out with Gayle. That is, if you don’t have any other pressing matters.”
I got that last part out in a bit of a rush, and now that it was out, I felt relief and maybe a little bit of panic. I didn’t know why exactly, but it felt important that he say yes. I not only valued his knowledge about protection and Zorren, but I was beginning to value him as a friend as well. I was also eager to get my childhood memories back, and while his stories had yet to help trigger my own memories, I knew it was just a matter of time.
The usual barrier was up, so I wasn’t getting a thing from Markus emotionally, but I saw the flicker of surprise across his face. He sat there a long moment before speaking.
“I’m not sure your father will appreciate me being at the Palace or taking a role in your security. I might have mentioned he doesn’t think very highly of me.”
I was prepared for this, and I pressed forward bravely. “I actually talked to him last evening, mentioning that I was thinking about asking you to head my security. It’s true, he wasn’t happy about it at first. He claimed you were too much of a ruffian and had a knack for offending all the wrong people. He also happened to mention that while he could never prove it, he suspected that you were behind several assassination attempts on my brothers.”
I stopped here and gave Markus a raised eyebrow, but the man was like brick house. He gave nothing away, not even a twitch of his mouth. I decided that if he wanted to talk about that he would when he was ready, so I pressed on.
“And then I said that maybe that was exactly the kind of person I wanted running my security. You aren’t afraid of my brothers, you know how they operate, you aren’t apprehensive about hitting back when necessary, and you know how not to get caught. I also reemphasized that while you might have gone after my brothers in the past that you would never do such a thing to me or my father.”
I gave Markus a pointed look at that last part. While I actually wasn’t sure about his intentions toward my father, I needed him to make sure he understood the rules if he signed on. I had no doubt in my mind that Markus probably had tried to take out my brothers. He certainly seemed capable of such things. Though I was curious as to the why. But I could also read between the lines, and after all I had heard about Markus and all he had told me the last few days in our talks and stories, I already suspected I knew the truth of the matter.
There was a long silence between us before Markus finally broke it. “I do tend to offend people. Hope that won’t be a problem.”
He delivered that statement in such a matter of fact way that I couldn’t help but bark out in laughter. My voice echoed across the balcony and my lung protested at the action, but I ignored it. Instead, my attention was caught by a small smile cutting across Markus’s face. And instantly, I felt a great deal of relief flood through me.
“Good. Thank you. Truly. I feel much better about going back to Dyniss with you signed on,” I said making sure to put as much emotion behind my words as I could. He might be frugal with his, but that didn’t mean I had to be the same with mine.
There. I felt it. A small surge of gratitude, and even relief of his own. Had he been worried about me too? But the emotions didn’t last long. It was cut off abruptly and I marveled at his ability to block himself like that. Maybe he could teach me or tell me where to learn that too? Because I could certainly see where it would be handy to not always be such a bleeding heart.
“Was that it?” He asked with clear expectation of something else.
I sat back, adjusted the light blanket on my lap, and then gave him my own expectant look. “Well, since you’re here…” I trailed off, letting him take up what came next.
The man gave a chuckled. “You aren’t going to be happy until I spill every last detail of our childhood, aren’t you? I dare say that was probably the real reason behind you asking me to Dyniss to be your so-called head of security.”
I gave him a satisfied smile. “Guilty as charged.”
He matched my smile, sat back in his chair, and adopted the familiar look of him trying to recall memories from years before. He took a deep breath and plunged into yet another tale of our shared past.